European Football Bodies Agree Transfer System Overhaul

Europe’s leading football stakeholders have united behind a new set of principles to guide reform of the sport’s transfer system, issuing a landmark joint resolution following months of social dialogue under the umbrella of the European Commission.

European Football Clubs (EFC), European Leagues, FIFPRO Europe, representing players, and UEFA, which chaired the process, jointly adopted the framework at a plenary meeting of the EU Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Professional Football in Brussels on 26 November. The agreement follows last year’s Diarra ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU, which found parts of FIFA’s Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP) incompatible with EU law and prompted a comprehensive review of transfer rules.

The resolution sets out shared principles to underpin FIFA-level reforms in the coming years, aiming to bring the global framework into line with EU legal standards while maintaining the unique structures of European football. Stakeholders say the objective is to achieve “long-term stability, fairness, legal certainty, and a balanced regulatory environment in which both clubs and players can thrive.”

EU-led platform to inform global reform

The social partners emphasise that Europe, which accounts for nearly 90% of global transfer market value, “has a responsibility to lead” in shaping rules that heavily affect its clubs, players and competitions. The EU’s Social Dialogue Committee will continue to feed into FIFA’s ongoing reform efforts throughout 2026.

Key themes include balancing clubs’ investment and planning needs with players’ individual rights and freedom of movement, strengthening the redistributive functions of transfers, improving transparency and efficiency, and ensuring reforms are designed within a legally secure EU framework rather than fragmented national rules.

The Diarra ruling also triggered a renewed focus on Article 17 of the RSTP, relating to compensation for contract termination without just cause. The stakeholders signalled openness to frameworks based on liquidated damages or penalty clauses, provided they remain “fair and non-abusive”, and reiterated the need for predictable protected periods and proportionate sporting sanctions.

The statement also underlines that the international transfer certificate (ITC) process must remain a “purely administrative formality” and should never hinder a player’s ability to work or a club’s ability to register talent.

Focus areas for 2026: training rewards, minors, and dispute resolution

Beyond the technical reform of transfer rules, the committee will continue work next year on three structural issues viewed as crucial for the European game.

Training compensation and solidarity payments, untouched since 2001, will be examined with a view to increasing fairness, better reflecting club investment in development, and reducing administrative burdens.

Protection and career pathways for under-18 players will be reviewed to ensure the right balance between child safeguarding, professional progression and the financial sustainability of youth academies.

Strengthening national dispute resolution chambers is also a priority, with the aim of improving access to justice, reinforcing contractual stability and ensuring domestic bodies operate in line with FIFA principles and EU law.

Wider workstreams: workload, welfare and DEI

Alongside transfer reform, the social partners have spent the past year working on diversity, equality and inclusion initiatives, national social dialogue structures, and occupational health and safety. Discussions on player welfare have focused on the escalating physical and mental demands of the modern calendar, including workload management and the need for protected rest periods for both men’s and women’s football.

Next steps

The joint resolution will now be transmitted to FIFA and is intended to guide decision-making as the governing body develops long-term proposals to replace its interim rules introduced in late 2024.

UEFA and the social partners reaffirmed their commitment to building a transfer system that is “stable, fair, sustainable and legally sound”, one that protects players, supports club investment strategies, and strengthens competitive balance across European football.

_{Featured Image Credit: UEFA.com}